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Interview with the Lab Rat

A while ago, I got sent an email with a short little list of questions asking whether I'd like to be interviewed for the Science and Technology section of the Charlotte Observer. To give an idea of what they wanted they sent along a couple of examples. I wrote out a couple of answers, sent it off, and was very surprised and excited when I found out today (via Bora's twitter) that the interview has actually been published! You can read it HERE.

The more perceptive among you may have noticed that included in the interview is a photo. The photo is of me. After spending two years being paranoid about the internet world connecting a picture of SE Gould (no relation to the Other Gould!) to the persona of Lab Rat, I've gone and sent over a nice big pic of my face for them.

I thought I'd better put forward a few reasons for this.

1 - The ego reason. They wouldn't publish the interview without a picture and I really wasn't about to pass up on an actual interview.

2 - The feminist reason. All the examples they sent me had pictures of men. I really wanted to get a picture of a woman in there somewhere.

3 - The 'I am fed up of being scared and paranoid' reason. This one takes more explanation. Suffice to say because of where I was brought up I was constantly surrounded by this "be doubly careful of everything you do and everyone you talk too" mindset. Even now, back in England, it's everywhere. Walking home in the dark, going travelling alone, being alone in a room with a stranger, I seem to be constantly slightly jumpy that something might hurt me. And all the while I am surrounded by people who are doing the same things as me and don't care about the danger at all. I know what almost allofmybloggyfriends look like (with the exception of Psi); they aren't getting mass-murdered so why should I be scared?

But yeah, it was mostly the dazzling prospect of an interview that broke that principle :p

[And anyone who wants to take the picture and feature it in a "top ten sexiest microbiologists!" list: don't. Just don't. It'll piss me off, and will also be a good sign that you need glasses.]

6 comments:

Nice interview! One more step on the way to blogging stardom ;).I think your reasons for sending in your picture are sound. I can only be happy that the world now knows that SE Gould is responsible for that great blog!